Caterina Faggio

Università degli Studi di Messina | UNIME · Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences

Introduction: Bivalve molluscs like Mytilus galloprovincialis are valuable bioindicators due to their filter-feeding lifestyle, wide distribution, and ability to concentrate xenobiotics. Studying the effects of pharmaceuticals on these molluscs is crucial given their presence in surface waters. This study investigated the response of M. galloprovin...

Immunostimulants in feed additives have a crucial function in maintaining fish wellness and fostering systemic development by giving resistance to diseases that harm cultured fish. Innate immunity is essential for fish larvae to survive. Afterward, innate immunity is helpful in modulating acquired immune system response and regulation via numerous...

This study aimed to investigate the effects of diazinon on fish, focusing on hepatotoxic biomarkers and the potential protective effects of silymarin supplementation. One hundred eighty rainbow trout were randomly assigned to four groups: control, diazinon exposed (0.1 mg L −1), silymarin supplemented (400 mg kg −1), and diazinon + silymarin. Blood...

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of Foeniculum vulgare essential oil on the health of the common carp (Cyprinus carpio). A total of 120 healthy fish were provided with feed containing 200, 400, and 600 mg/kg of F. vulgare oil for 60 days. Findings revealed that the oral administration of 200 mg/kg of F. vulgare oil significantly in...

The aquaculture industry is expanding to meet the daily requirements of humanity from high-quality seafood. In this regard, intensive aquaculture systems are suggested, resulting in high production but being challenged with immunosuppression and disease invaders. Antibiotics were used for a long time to protect and treat aquatic animals; however, c...

The widespread use of silica nanoparticles (SiO2-NPs) in various industries, including chemical polishing, cosmetics, varnishes, medical, and food products, has increased the risk of their release into aquatic ecosystems. The toxic effects of small-size SiO2-NPs on the reproductive performance of zebrafish (Danio rerio) have yet to be widely studie...

Multistress effects lead to unpredicted consequences in aquatic ecotoxicology and are extremely concerning. The goal of this study was to trace how specific effects of the antibiotic salynomycin (Sal) and microplastics (MP) on the bivalve molluscs are manifested in the combined environmentally relevant exposures. Unio tumidus specimens were treated...

Trace minerals are essential for the normal functioning of all living organisms. In addition, the positive effects of several medicinal plants have been demonstrated in aquaculture. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the effects of a mixture of medicinal plants and test the synergistic effects of medicinal plants and chelated minerals on...

Concerns have been raised about the possible environmental effects of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), which is widely used as a gasoline additive. This research aimed to look at the consequences of MTBE contamination on rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), emphasizing oxidative stress, genotoxicity, and histopathological damage. After determining t...

Since the 2000 s, the pearl oyster Pinctada imbricata (Röding, 1798) has become established along the transitional waterways of the "Capo Peloro Lagoon" natural reserve, where it is now abundant due to its adaptability to different hydrological, climatic, environmental, and pollution conditions. This study aims to evaluate haemocyte immune-mediated...

The accumulation of plastic in marine systems and its degradation into microplastics has become a global issue not only for its environmental ubiquity, but also for the release of intrinsic additives, such as plasticizers, which may negatively affect marine biota [1]. While phthalates are the plasticizers that have been present and accumulated in m...

The plastic accumulation and its degradation into microplastics is an environmental issue not only for their ubiquity, but also for the release of intrinsic chemicals, such as phthalates (PAEs), non-phthalate plasticizers (NPPs), and bisphenols (BPs), which may reach body organs and tissues, and act as endocrine disruptors. Monitoring plastic addit...

Due to their uncontrolled use, plastics has become an environmental concern, not only for their varying dimension but also for the potential release of substances such as phthalates (PAEs) and non-phthalates (NPPs) into the water. Phthalates are the most common plasticizers of concern, but non-phthalate plasticizers such as di (2-ethylhexyl) tereph...

Enrofloxacin (ENR) is a broad-spectrum antibiotic widely used due to its efficacy against pathogens. Micro- plastics (MPs) may bind to ENR and reduce its efficiency, whereas there would be an increase in its toxicity, bioavailability, and bio-accumulation rates. Therefore, the hypothesis is that the interaction between MPs and ENR can alter their t...

In this historical context, the Mediterranean Sea faces an increasing threat from emerging pollutants such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products, heavy metals, pesticides and microplastics, which pose a serious risk to the environment and human health. In this regard, aquatic invertebrates and fish are particularly vulnerable to the toxic effe...

Plastics, long-chain artificial polymers, are used worldwide with a global production of 350 million tonnes per year. Various degradation processes transform plastics into smaller fragments divided into micro, meso and macroplastics. In various industries, such as construction, certain plastic additives are used to improve flexibility and enhance p...

A serious global problem, air pollution poses a risk to both human and environmental health. It contains hazardous material like heavy metals, nanoparticles, and others that can create an impact on both land and marine environments. Particulate pollutants, which can enter water systems through a variety of ways, including precipitation and industri...

Aquatic ecosystems cover more than two-thirds of the Earth's surface and play a vital role in maintaining a stable global temperature and providing various benefits to an expanding human population. However, human activities are causing negative effects on these ecosystems. Particulate matter (PM) refers to tiny particles with a variable compositio...

Caffeine (Caff) is one of the most widely used substances in the human diet and a well-recognized drug. Its input into surface waters is remarkable, but biological effects on aquatic organisms are unclear, particularly in combination with pollutants of suspected modulatory activity, like microplastics (MP). The aim of this study was to reveal the i...

The lack of data on the chronic effects of chloroacetanilide herbicide metabolites on non-target aquatic organisms creates a gap in knowledge about the comprehensive impacts of excessive and repeated pesticide use. Therefore, this study evaluates the long-term effects of propachlor ethanolic sulfonic acid (PROP-ESA) after 10 (T1) and 20 (T2) days a...

Citation: Banaee, M.; Zeidi, A.; Sinha, R.; Faggio, C. Individual and Combined Toxic Effects of Nano-ZnO and Polyethylene Microplastics on Mosquito Fish (Gambusia holbrooki). Water 2023, 15, 1660. https:// Abstract: The omnipresence of microplastics and nanoparticles has led to their entry into the fresh and marine aquatic systems and affected the...

Chromium is an abundant metal in the earth's crust and plays an important role in water pollution. There are two main forms of chromium in the environment: trivalent chromium and hexavalent chromium, as the most toxic form. The present study investigated the effects of propolis on the amount of chromium reabsorption in the Redfish's liver, kidney,...

Microplastic pollution has become pervasive. Identifying a bioindicator species to track the occurrence and effects of microplastics (MPs) on ecosystems is crucial for determining their impact on the environment. The digestive tract of Procambarus clarkii was thought to be of interest for investigating MPs accumulation in freshwater organisms. Our...

Personal care products (PCPs) are those compounds used daily (e.g., soaps, shampoos, deodorants, and toothpaste), explaining their frequent detection in aquatic systems. Still, scarce information is available on their effects on inhabiting wildlife. Among the most commonly used PCPs is the surfactant sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). The present study i...

Blood cells are constantly exposed to several pollutants, including xenobiotics, and they can be considered a useful target for pollution exposition of the animal. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of two xenobiotics (Quaternium-15, a preservative used in personal care products, and Thiacloprid, a neonicotinoid pesticide) on the...

Fishes is an international, peer-reviewed, scientific, open access journal published monthly online by MDPI. It covers fishes and aquatic animals research. The Iberian Society of Ichthyology (SIBIC) and the Brazilian Society of Aquaculture and Aquatic Biology (Aquabio) are affiliated with Fishes and their members receive a discount on the article p...

Fishes is an international, peer-reviewed, scientific, open access journal published monthly online by MDPI. It covers fishes and aquatic animals research. The Iberian Society of Ichthyology (SIBIC) and the Brazilian Society of Aquaculture and Aquatic Biology (Aquabio) are affiliated with Fishes and their members receive a discount on the article p...

Fish in wild are often faced with various types of xenobiotics, that may display synergistic or antagonistic effects. In this study, we aim to examine how exposure to agrochemical compound (Bacilar) and cadmium (CdCl 2) alone and in combination affect biochemical parameters (lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, g...

Galeus melastomus is the most common Pentanchidae in the Mediterranean Sea. A scavenger and opportunistic feeder, and despite the wide distribution, little is known about its feeding habits in Italian waters. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the diet of the blackmouth catshark by analysing the stomach contents. The specimens analys...

Even though the toxic effects of antibiotics and heavy metals have been extensively studied in the last decades, their combined adverse impact on aquatic organisms is poorly understood. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the acute effects of a ciprofloxacin (Cipro) and lead (Pb) mixture on the 3D swimming behavior, acetylcholinest...

The pearl oyster Pinctada imbricata radiata (Leach, 1814), from the Pacific Ocean, was one of the first species to reach via Suez the Mediterranean, colonizing the eastern basin and recently spreading to the western. The species showed to be able to adapt to a wide range of climatic, hydrological, and ecological conditions. Since 2000 it reached th...

Ionizing radiation from radionuclides impacts marine aquatic biota and the scope of investigation must be wider than just invertebrates. We intend to detail and illustrate numerous biological effects that occur in both aquatic vertebrates and invertebrates, at various dose rates from all three kinds of ionizing radiation. The characteristics of rad...

Mancozeb and metalaxyl are fungicidal agents frequently used in combination to control fungi in crops that may affect non-target organisms when entering ecosystems. This study aims to evaluate the environmental effects of Mancozeb (MAN) and Metalaxyl (MET), alone and in combination, on zebrafish (Danio rerio) as an experimental model. The oxidative...

This study evaluated Acetic acid (AA) and Benzoic acid's (BA) acute and sublethal toxicity by observing mortality, behavioral responses, and changes in the levels of oxidative stress enzymes in Tubifex tubifex. Exposure-induced changes in antioxidant activity (Catalase, Superoxide dismutase), oxidative stress (Malondialdehyde concentrations), and h...

The abundance, dominance and diversity of the arachnid population are influenced by their habitat’s microclimate and environmental variables. Here we evaluated a seasonal dominance, diversity and richness pattern of the arachnid population and their guild composition in the Muthupet mangrove forest. Most of the spiders were aggregated from specific...

Marine pollution, due to the regular discharge of contaminants by various anthropogenic sources, is a growing problem that imposes detrimental influences on natural species. Sharks, because of a diet based on smaller polluted animals, are exposed to the risk of water contamination and the subsequent bioaccumulation and biomagnification. Trace eleme...

The pesticide ecosystem impacts are very diverse, and depending on their persistence could exert their intrinsic toxicity within an acute to a chronic timeframe. This study examined the toxic effects of Diazinon on haematological and biochemical endpoints in Oreochromis mossambicus after chronic exposure. After a prior range fining test, fishes wer...

Swan mussels (Anodonta cygnea) have been suggested as suitable bioindicators for the presence of pollutants in the environment. Application of the physiological and behavioral markers in these sessile species can be beneficial for environmental monitoring. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between the behavioral disorders of m...

Increasing global population demands modernization in agricultural production to achieve sustainable food security. The frequent pest infestation causes a significant economic loss and deleterious impact on agriculture production. While, the traditional application of conventional pesticides leads to loss of soil biodiversity, decline in pollinator...

The increasing use of nano-based products raises concerns regarding potential risks related to their manufacturing, transportation, waste disposal, and management operations. We used the riverine carp, Capoeta capoeta, as an aquatic animal model to demonstrate the acute toxicity of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs). This study focuses on acute toxicity...

Not long after plastic-made material became an inseparable part of our lives, microplastics (MPs) found their way into ecosystems. Aquatic organisms are one of the groups impacted by man-made materials and plastics; however, the varied effects of MPs on these organisms have yet to be fully understood. Therefore, to clarify this issue, 288 freshwate...

Microplastic (MP) and heating (T) suspected to modulate biological effects of aquatic contaminants. Salinomycin (Sal) is veterinary antibiotic and anticancer agent. The goal of this study was to examine the multistress effect of MP, Sal and T on the bioindicator bivalve mollusc. The Unio tumidus were treated with MP (1 mg L-1), Sal (0.6 µg L-1), th...

Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate insecticide occurring in aquatic ecosystems. Due to exposure to xenobiotics, several harmful effects on aquatic organisms are noticed worldwide. Mangrove crabs are an ecologically important aquatic invertebrate species in food web interactions and in the mangrove ecosystem. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate...

The survey of available scientific literature shows a lack of data on the chronic effects of tebuconazole (TEB) on nontarget aquatic organisms. Therefore, this study evaluates toxicity (10 and 20 days) of two considered concentrations 2 ng/L (E1) and 2 μg/L (E2) of TEB to bioindicator species Mytilus galloprovincialis. To this end, the TEB concentr...

Invertebrates have long been an important tool for assessing water pollution due to their characteristics as intermediate consumers in aquatic ecosystem food chains. Most of the time, the effects of contaminants are measured by their effect on oxidative status or by mortality, although there already exists an easier tool—hemocytes. Hemocytes are ci...

The rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) is one of the most commercially sought-after fresh- water fish species and one of the most farmed in the world. On the other hand, aquaculture breeding frequently results in outbreaks of infectious diseases and pests, and compromises the production and welfare of fish. Arthrospira platensis (known as “Spiruli...

Microplastics (MPs) are contaminants widely distributed in the environment and biota. Previously, most studies focused on identifying and characterizing microplastics in the marine environment, while their impact on freshwater ecosystems remains to be determined. This review summarizes recent findings regarding MPs physiological, immunological, and...

Prof. Massimo Cocchi, one of the most experienced scientists in nutritional biochemistry, past and honorary President of the Italian Society for Experimental Biology (Società Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale), passed away on May 19th, 2022, in his house in San Lazzaro di Savena (Bologna). He was a man of the highest value both from the scientific...

Deep Sea environments represent the final collector of anthropogenic debris mainly represented by both plastic and non-plastic materials with different size. This led to potential contamination of deep marine fauna due to direct and indirect ingestion, representing a potential hazard for the species itself and for the final consumer. In this framew...

Lately, the interest in researching microplastics in the Black Sea has increased, highlighting areas of accumulation in which the amounts of microplastics are alarming, such as seafood consumed by the population. The Black Sea has special characteristics in terms of currents and wave dynamics that create opportunities for the accumulation of microp...

This review summarises the current knowledge on the effects of microplastics and their additives on organisms living in the aquatic environment, particularly invertebrates and fish. To date, microplastics have been recognised to affect not only the behaviour of aquatic animals but also their proper development, causing variations in fertility, oxid...

The acute toxicity of mercury to the air-breathing fish Clarias batrachus (Linn.) was determined in this study using hematological (including hemoglobin, hematocrit, total erythrocyte count, total leukocyte count, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration) and biochemical (including total serum protein, serum glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol,...

The quantification of capture-related physiological stress is an important factor when assessing the potential for post-release survival in sharks that are incidentally captured. In the absence of these biological data and when the post-release fate is unknown, effective management plans cannot be formulated and may lead to highly susceptible shark...

Nowadays, global environmental pollution is one of the most topical issues we have to deal with on a daily basis. Due to the development of the current society including industrial and agricultural areas, pollution and waste have increased dramatically in recent years. Among all contaminants spread worldwide, the increased use of plastic is probabl...

In this modern industrialized era of large-scale production of agrochemicals, various emerging contaminants form the main components of waste water and sludge in most of the developing countries of the world. In this concern, phenol- an inevitable and alarming chemical pollutant in aquatic ecosystem, gains a speedy access into the water bodies as a...

To examine the spectrum of selenium toxicity between hardy and less hardy species of the same life stages, short-term and longer-term exposures in juvenile air-breathing fish Channa punctata (Bloch, 1973) and non-air-breathing fish Ctenopharyn-godon idella (Cuvier, 1844) were assessed. Acute exposures revealed a greater 96-h median lethal concentra...

Aquatic environmental pollution is a rather worrying and increasingly topical problem that requires the development and promotion of innovative and eco-friendly technologies. Pollutants in water include many common substances that can reach aquatic ecosystems through several pathways including wastewater, the atmosphere, ship discharges, and many o...

Abstract Tebuconazole (TEB) [(RS)-1-p-chlorophenyl-4,4-dimethyl-3-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl) pentan-3-ol] is an enantioselective chiral azole pesticide considered to have low toxicity. Residual concentrations, however, can induce detrimental effects on the physiological processes of aquatic organisms. Marine invertebrates such as Mytilus gallopr...

The toxic effects of Zinc oxide nanoparticles (nZnO) on Branchiura sowerbyi and Heteropneustes fossilis, was assessed in a 96-hour acute exposure regime using behavioral (including loss-of balance and clumping tendencies) and physiological (mucus secretion and oxygen consumption) endpoints. While the relationship between behavioral, physiological b...

In the framework of investigations aimed to detect new available bioindicators in marine environment, haemolymph cells and ctenidia of the Mediterranean spiny oyster, Spondylus gaederopus, have been investigated. Haemocyte count and characterisation, phagocytosis and superoxide anion production and enzyme activity assays, have been carried out. TEM...

Pharmaceutical products are largely used by humans, making them commonly found in the environment, especially the aquatic ones. The presence and the increasing concentration represent a risk for non-target organisms and humans too because many of these species enter the human food chain. At the top of the list of medicine and anti-inflammatory drug...

Spondylus gaederopus (Linnaeus, 1758) is an East Atlantic-Mediterranean sessile bivalve. It preferentially settles in the infralittoral zone, up to 50 m depth. It is also called “spiny oyster”, due to its spinose shell surface having a mymetic function and predator defence. The aim of this study was to understand the ecological role of S. gaederop...

Tebuconazole (TEB) is a triazole fungicide used in agriculture to treat many fungal diseases worldwide. Due to its extensive use, TEB has now been considered a contaminant of aquatic ecosystems. It is paramount to understand its damage mechanisms to the soil, the aquatic environment, and especially non-target organisms. In particular, marine invert...